Bailey lives up to his name as Sox hammer Reds

Sox 9, Reds 0
WP: Beckett (7-4)
LP: Bailey (0-3)
SV: None
HRs: BOS-Drew (11), Crisp (4), Ellsbury (4), Pedroia (5); CIN-None

SUMMARY:
After two tight games in this series Boston batters teed off on the ragged Reds pitching staff today, blasting four home runs including three off appropriately-named starter Homer Bailey, as the Sox took the series two games to one.

#1 STUNNER: Jacoby Ellsbury 3-5, 2R, HR, RBI, 2SB
The electric Sox outfielder sparked the offense today when he led off the game with a single, stole second and third base, and came around to score on a sac fly. He also contributed a home run to lead off the 3rd, and his two steals gave him the Red Sox all-time rookie record of 33.

THE BIGGEST LOSER: Bailey 2.1IP, 4H, 5ER, 3BB, 0K, 3HR
The only thing worse than a pitcher with the name of 'Walk' is a hurler with a moniker as unfortunate as 'Homer', especially when he lives up, err down, to his handle.

RECAP:
No Manny?

No Papi?

No biggie.

Despite the absence of the team's top two sluggers Boston still managed to club four home runs, three by the most unlikely trio of Coco Crisp, Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia, and inflict an 11-hit, 9-run beatdown on the Reds in the finale of the first Sox series in Cincy since 1975.

And the beneficiary of all the unexpected offensive largess was Josh Beckett, who pitched just well enough (7IP, 6H, 2BB, 6K, 98P) to earn his second win in his last three starts and seventh of the season, helping Boston win its 16th road game as they start to distance themselves from the bottom of the pack in road losses.

But the story in this one wasn't the pitching but the source of Boston's unlikely offense.

It's one thing to have guys step up when your big guns go down. That's what heavy-hitting vets like Mike Lowell, Jason Varitek and J.D. Drew are paid and expected to do.

It's another story entirely when smallish "sluggers" like Coco (2-5, R, 4BI) and Pedroia and fleet-footed rookies like Ellsy power your offense to its most one-sided victory in a season already full of 'em.

What it says is that top to bottom this team is capable of beating any other even when it isn't at full strength, and when guys like Justin Masterson, Bartolo Colon, Coco Crisp and Little Big Man step up and fill a void and lead the Sox to victory, it bodes well for a club hell-bent on going deep in the playoffs this year.

Not that we'd rather go with these guys than Manny, Papi, Dice-K and Schill, but it's like having a comfy security blanket knowing they're there if we need 'em.

I already mentioned above how Boston scored its first run, on those fleet feet of Ellsbury as he stole two bases in the first inning to surpass a team rookie record that had stood since 1908. His 33 steals are 33 off the AL rookie mark, held by Kenny Lofton, but he's got a LONG way to go if he hopes to break the ML mark of 110, set by Vince Coleman in 1985.

Beckett escaped a jam in the second when he struck out Adam Dunn looking with runners on 1st and 2nd, courtesy fo a walk and Julio Lugo's league-leading 13th error, and Boston began its homer barrage in the top of the second when Crisp smacked a 3-2 pitch from Bailey over the wall in right with Tek aboard for a 3-0 lead.

And with that shot, Coco's second in two days, the seal was officially broken.

After Becektt worked out of another 1st & 2nd situation by striking out the pitcher Bailey (gotta love the NL) and then getting phenom Jay Bruce to pop out, Ellsy showed off his versatility and showed up his centerfield counterpart by lining a leadoff homer into the rightfield seats for Boston's fourth run of the day.

Two pitches later, following a fly out by Pedroia, Drew (1-2, 2R, BI, 2BB) knocked another Bailey meatball to nearly the same spot for his 7th homer in June and a 5-0 Boston lead.

When Bailey followed that bombing with a five pitch walk to Lowell, he was out of the game and the game was soon gonna be out of hand for Cincy.

As Becks was in the process of retiring 10 Reds in a row, Boston piled on in the 5th when Youk (1-5, R, BI) hit an RBI single off Jeremy Affeldt to score Drew, who had walked, to make the score 6-0, and Coco followed that with a 2-RBI single off Dan Majewski for an 8-0 lead to make the game an official laugher.

By the time Pedroia (1-4, R, 2BI) took Majewski deep for Boston's fourth homer and ninth run of the game in the 6th the sold out stadium was basically empty as every Reds fan had already headed out to celebrate Father's Day in a more enjoyable fashion.

About the only ones left, aside from the Cincy diehards, were Sox fans and Youk's family, and the last three innings resembled an intimate gathering at the local muni field.

When Mike Timlin retired the side in order in the 9th the game was mercifully over, and Boston had its second straight road series win under its belt as it headed to its next destination, fabulous Philly.

So the Sox say goodbye to the Queen City again.

At least the memories were a lot better this time around.

NOTES:
-Manny's hammy: Ramirez sat out his second straight game with that tender hammy. He played only 7 of a possible 21 innings in the series, including a pinch hit appearance in the 10th inning yesterday

-Drew's back: after going 0-4 yesterday to snap an 11-game hitting streak Drew picked up where he left off by belting his seventh homer of June. He's now batting .446 (21-47) with 7 homers, 19 runs and 16 RBI in the month.

-So is Tek: after missing the last three games with a sore throat Jason Varitek returned to the starting lineup and went 0-2 with a run and two walks. he was removed in the 8th for Kevin Cash.

RECORD: 44-28
AL EAST: Up 2.5 gms
STREAK: W2
LAST 10: 7-3
UP NEXT: Mon @ PHI 705 ESPN Colon vs. Hammels